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Furloughed Workers Take Frustration Online

Some furloughed government workers are taking their frustration out online. News4's Angie Goff has more. (Published Monday, Oct. 7, 2013)

Thousands of Americans are turning to social media to voice their frustration about the federal government shutdown, using Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to send messages to Congress and share the personal impacts as the federal funding fight enters its second week.

One group has even launched CongressStillGetsPaid.com, a website that clocks how much Congress is getting paid each second of the shutdown.

The developer of the software and his team, which includes a Georgetown University graduate, said they created the site to show voters the privilege not afforded to furloughed workers. They say when all 535 members are seated, it costs Americans $2.95 cents per second to have Congress in session.

Since the start of the shutdown, more than 100 lawmakers have vowed to donate or refuse their pay.

The 1st Government Shutdown in 17 Years

Furloughed federal workers are also using social media to put a personal face on the shutdown, sharing how they are making ends meet through Instagram. Users posted receipts showing their furlough discounts with hashtags like #GataEat.

A number of government websites have also gone dark, causing an uproar on social media.

Instead of showing critical missing children bulletins, the federal Amber Alert website on Sunday displayed a sparse, white screen with a simple message. "Due to the lapse in federal funding, this Office of Justice Programs (OJP) website is unavailable," the message read, just below a U.S. Department of Justice seal. Officials put the site, which normally displays urgent alerts from across the nation about the most at-risk missing children, back up on Monday.

The website , helping to connect citizens and law enforcement across all participating jurisdictions

The closure of another website ignited outrage after a 3.0 magnitude earthquake struck San Francisco Sunday. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) which went offline the day of the shutdown originally didn't post an update on the quake. After a flood of angry tweets, the agency posted an update within an hour.